The Book 2007 Ragin' Cajun Baseball

[Kal]

_ Sorry guys, I am in no way a fair-weather fan but after what I saw this past weekend these guys better start stepping it up. To go out and only score 2 runs in front of a home crowd against one of the worst teams in the Sun Belt is down right disgusting. You can say "hey, it's baseball" all you want, but this is not what gets a team success in the NCAA tournament. There should be no reason why the whole team should suffer because a few guys are in a slump, and you can't blame the pitchers for having trouble because they are getting NO run support. Like I said, I love the Cajuns but I have much higher expectations. _

It's not so much that they aren't getting run support, as evidenced in our 11 to 7 victory on saturday. It's the fact that we are too inconsistent defensively and that we continue to strike out making average pitchers look like Cy young award candidates. The constant moving in and out of the rotation for some players is making it hard for them to be consistent. Our short stops have had some serious fielding errors as of late too. This team has a consistency problem. Plus the fact that we don't have a consistent third starter is a big problem as well.

[AstroCajun]

Sorry guys, I am in no way a fair-weather fan but after what I saw this past weekend these guys better start stepping it up. To go out and only score 2 runs in front of a home crowd against one of the worst teams in the Sun Belt is down right disgusting. You can say "hey, it's baseball" all you want, but this is not what gets a team success in the NCAA tournament. There should be no reason why the whole team should suffer because a few guys are in a slump, and you can't blame the pitchers for having trouble because they are getting NO run support. Like I said, I love the Cajuns but I have much higher expectations.

Do you understand how difficult it is on any level to beat a team three times in a row?

Be content with the series win and the knowlege that it's only the second loss at the Tigue all season.

[cjr3888]

_ Do you understand how difficult it is on any level to beat a team three times in a row?

Be content with the series win and the knowlege that it's only the second loss at the Tigue all season. _

[cajuns67]

Do you understand how difficult it is on any level to beat a team three times in a row?

Be content with the series win and the knowlege that it's only the second loss at the Tigue all season.

The team played lazy all three games and could have lost all three games if Arkansas State didn’t have the worst 7th inning on pitching that I have seen in a long time. That being said we took the series we are on top of the Sunbelt and I fully expect the team to be tuff in the postseason (if they stop allowing singles to be stretched into doubles, stop lollygagging it to first, and play with a little enthusiasm)

[cajunfan79]

yeah but against ASU, comeone we can't afford not to sweep these guys. And I think you could figure that out by tony's comment of 2 of 3 not acceptable "this weekend" is what I remember him saying.

[Cajun Express]

_ The team played lazy all three games and could have lost all three games if Arkansas State didn’t have the worst 7th inning on pitching that I have seen in a long time. That being said we took the series we are on top of the Sunbelt and I fully expect the team to be tuff in the postseason (if they stop allowing singles to be stretched into doubles, stop lollygagging it to first, and play with a little enthusiasm) _

Another big problem is our strikeout ratio. Way too high. You cannot put pressure on the other team without putting the ball in play....

[lcitsh]

_ Do you understand how difficult it is on any level to beat a team three times in a row?

Be content with the series win and the knowlege that it's only the second loss at the Tigue all season. _

It's not difficult when you are clearly superior to the team you're playing. I'll be content when they finish the job they started and develop the killer instinct they will need when they play real competition.

[NewsCopy]

UL's baseball team doesn't play a mid-week game this week, and that's a good thing for the Ragin' Cajuns heading into the home stretch of the 2007 season. During the just-completed weekend series against Arkansas State, the Cajuns appeared lethargic even though winning two out of three and holding onto a two-game lead in the Sun Belt Conference standings. "This comes at a good time for us," Cajun coach Tony Robichaux said of the week away from play. "It'll help us get our legs back under us. We're coming off some long trips and a lot of road games, and finals are only a week away." UL (32-13, 15-6) also gets a chance to rest up before playing one of its biggest series of the season this weekend. The Cajuns travel to Monroe for a three-game Sun Belt series against UL Monroe beginning at 6 p.m. Friday. That series would have had even more impact had not ULM dropped two of three games at Troy over the weekend. The Warhawks are in a virtual tie with Troy for second place in the standings. The rest of the story Dan McDonald dmcdonald@theadvertiser.com

[rhineaux]

They obviously left next week open for the finals week, but the earlier rain-out at Houston forced them to play next week anyway. I assume they scheduled it for next week because UH already had a game scheduled this week and didn't want to play two. But, I wonder why, starting at the beginning of the season, there was no game scheduled for this week. I am curious if coach foresaw that the team would be pretty tired after the three weeks they have just come off of, and figured that they would be able to use a few days off. I think its good that they were able to get a game in one of these two weeks, but too bad it had to happen during finals.

[GoneGolfin]

I sent the following to Mark Etheridge concerning the Cajuns' difficult road schedule and he is going to make reference to such in the Daily Dose tomorrow ...

I suspect that the Cajuns' record against the Top 50 (3-6) and potentially the Top 75 (10-9) Base RPI may give them problems if their Adjusted RPI slips down into the mid to late 20's. By trouble, I mean possibly losing out on a #2 seed, despite winning a conference championship. However, I wonder how deep the selection committee will dig here. An interesting thing to note is that all nine Top 50 games have been on the road. Additionally, sixteen of the nineteen Top 75 games have been on the road. When the regular season is complete, the Cajuns will have played 32 road games and only 24 home games. I venture to say that no team in the Top 20 will have played such a home/road differential. And many teams will be far from such a differential.

Brian

[CajunRed]

This is the kind of thing I've been ticked about for years. Unlike in basketball, the NCAA baseball RPI is not adjusted for home and away. Mid-majors normally have to play BCS programs on the road, whereas an SEC school, for instance, gets to play half its conference games at home. That is a HUGE disadvantage for a school like UL to have to overcome.

I hear all this crap about the SEC or the Big 12 having to play such a strong schedule, but in reality it isn't as strong as they would have you believe when you consider they get half of those games before their home crowd!

[Cajunsmike]

_ I sent the following to Mark Etheridge concerning the Cajuns' difficult road schedule and he is going to make reference to such in the Daily Dose tomorrow ...

I suspect that the Cajuns' record against the Top 50 (3-6) and potentially the Top 75 (10-9) Base RPI may give them problems if their Adjusted RPI slips down into the mid to late 20's. By trouble, I mean possibly losing out on a #2 seed, despite winning a conference championship. However, I wonder how deep the selection committee will dig here. An interesting thing to note is that all nine Top 50 games have been on the road. Additionally, sixteen of the nineteen Top 75 games have been on the road. When the regular season is complete, the Cajuns will have played 32 road games and only 24 home games. I venture to say that no team in the Top 20 will have played such a home/road differential. And many teams will be far from such a differential.

Brian _

Who is Mark Etheridge? I imagine he has some type of position on the selection committee. What is the Daily Dose? Do you believe your email will have some impact on the decision making process?